FSOL - From the Archives Volume 1 -3

[ben_house]

Future Sound Of London - From the Archives Volume 1 -3, digtially released today!

iTunes :

http://itunes.apple.com/gb/album/from-t ... d500659957" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

http://itunes.apple.com/gb/album/from-t ... d500661041" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

http://itunes.apple.com/gb/album/from-t ... d500176457" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;


Juno :

http://www.juno.co.uk/products/from-the ... 907667-02/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

http://www.juno.co.uk/products/from-the ... 907668-02/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

http://www.juno.co.uk/products/from-the ... 908774-02/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[mcbpete]

They were digitally released many years ago my dear - http://www.yage.co.uk/newtesting/index. ... 443dcd8012" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Though nice to see the word spread on other channels ...

(welcome to the board man, BTW )

[Pandemonium]

Hey Ross, I was just listening through the whole Archive series,
reading stuff too, and I realised, you had POSSIBLE YEARS of recording on all archive 1/2/3/4/5 material,
but we didn't get your thoughts on Archive 6.

this was your general post on the 6:

March Of The Money Men - as we know it from the youtube video, nice track.
Light Forming - ah, this is a Lifeforms piece, very, very ambient, lovely stuff.
Coast Line, Cross Winds - these sound quite old, like Money Men. Notice some Cascade album version vocal samples in Cross Winds.
Gyrated - ah, this is 'Somewhere' from EBS2. I have a feeling it might be 1997 sessions, this.
She Fell Backwards - STARK TOWER. I wish this had ended up on Environments 2 or 3, I really do.
Jelly Legs - wtf?
Departed - yeah, this one's really beautiful, one of those 'how did it not get released in the first place?' moments like Water Hole.
Protractor - oh this one's really weird. I like it a lot but I can't describe it. ISDN era is the most I can say.
Camel - clicky beats... hmm, familiar bassline here. Not sure where from. I like this.
Abandoned Incoming - I now no longer know the difference between the Environments series and the Archives series.
Induced Coma - as above. Sounds like one of the Tangerine Dream-esque sections of E1.
Swarm - stripped down version of Absent With Concept. Linear Block 5 - chunky industrial beats.
Unassumed - pleasant percussive piece.
Elation - didn't expect this to turn up here!

Overall, that was... weird. It seems vol 5 may have hit a peak - this certainly isn't as consistently brilliant than that - and there are a couple of ambient pieces which seem very Environments, not to mention Swarm. The record opens playfully but heads darker and more experimental as it goes on, with some of the band's strangest work appearing later on. Of interest, all 16 tracks are segued together, in the trend continuing from vol. 4.
I was honestly most surprised by the number of songs I didn't know.

Can we also have a moment for 'holy shit scary artwork' too? Shauneen looking worryingly like an abused corpse there.


- So, can we get year-estimates from the Pro ??

[Enofa]

Oh, go on then.

March Of The Money Men - I reckon probably 1992. It sounds more advanced than Accelerator but not quite up to Tales/Lifeforms level of complexity. So I'd put it as 1992 alongside stuff lke Tokyo Travel.
Light Forming - Lifeforms outtake.
Coast Line - 1992 again I reckon.
Cross Winds - Late 1993? Sounds like an early Lifeforms piece.
Gyrated - From the 1997 album, I think.
She Fell Backwards - I reckon this is ISDN era, although it doesn't sound like it.
Jelly Legs - This song does not exist and is purely a figment of our imaginations.
Departed - Has to be Lifeforms era. Why on earth Elaborate Burn got released but not this, I don't know.
Protractor - I'm guessing ISDN.
Camel - Don't know.
Abandoned Incoming - Too abstract to tell.
Induced Coma - Same.
Swarm - Dead Cities, obviously.
Linear Block 5 - It's around this point the album turns into one long track for me, I honestly can't remember how this one goes.
Unassumed - Same.
Elation - Same.

So, the second half is largely a mystery to me, in more ways than one.

[Pandemonium]

Well, then, lets sum it up, and try to listen in TIME-LINE order - its brilliant

A209 - Head Kick - 1991
A212 - Skinny Ribbed Fucker - 1991
A315 - Hardhead - 1991
A317 - I A I A I A I A I A - 1991
A407 - Shingles - 1992
A601 - March Of The Money Men - 1992
A603 - Coast Line - 1992
A206 - Insected - 1993
A510 - Vacuum - 1993
A512 - Toyko Travel - 1993
A604 - Cross Winds - Late 1993?
A101 - Lizzard Crawl - 1994
A103 - Field of Flowers - 1994
A104 - Environments - Birds - 1994
A105 - Still Flowers - 1994
A106 - Environments - Gong - 1994
A108 - UU - 1994
A109 - Turn Around - 1994
A112 - Hazey Day Girl - 1994
A113 - Wt Pavement - 1994
A117 - Nuru Send Device - 1994
A202 - Distant Nebulus - 1994
A205 - Cellular Control - 1994
A216 - Future - 1994
A217 - Museum - 1994
A301 - Empires - 1994
A303 - Considered - 1994
A306 - Room 207 - 1994
A307 - Environments T1 - 1994
A311 - Stomach Acid - 1994
A402 - Plasmatik - 1994
A406 - Wookii - 1994
A408 - 5 Months 5 Acres - 1994
A411 - Climbing - 1994
A602 - Light Forming - 1994
A606 - She Fell Backwards - 1994
A608 - Departed - 1994
A609 - Protractor - 1994
A107 - Woodland - 1995
A116 - Pale Moon - 1995
A201 - Brujo - 1995
A203 - Wanting - 1995
A207 - Night Lapsed - 1995
A213 - Fractional Difference - 1995
A220 - Mumble - 1995
A305 - The Teeth Of The Wind - 1995
A309 - La Tronik 1 - 1995
A314 - Rotation - 1995
A404 - 100 Baby Spiders - 1995
A410 - Golden Burnt - 1995
A511 - Fat Spat - 1995
A102 - Hallucination - 1996
A110 - Is This Real - 1996
A111 - Mouth Muse - 1996
A115 - Arrived - 1996
A204 - Environment Thunder - 1996
A208 - Slow Of Motion - 1996
A210 - Dark Matter - 1996
A211 - Mas X-Xx-Xx 2 - 1996
A215 - Mains Interupt - 1996
A221 - Insulin - 1996
A222 - Mas X-XX-XX - 1996
A304 - Mango Tree - 1996
A308 - Insides - 1996
A401 - Hidden Sign - 1996
A403 - West Path - 1996
A405 - Absent With Concept - 1996
A409 - Mango Tree Original - 1996
A506 - Yashica - 1996
A507 - Tif Feetal - 1996
A509 - Darkness At Noon - 1996
A613 - Swarm - 1996
A114 - Head Hunter - 1997
A316 - Popadom - 1997
A501 - Sendero Luminoso - 1997
A502 - A Sweltering Heat - 1997
A503 - Exploded Funk - 1997
A504 - Private Psyche And Inner Life - 1997
A605 - Gyrated - 1997
A302 - Long Shadows - 2001

A214 - Offerings - unknown
A218 - Nadir - unknown
A219 - Were Not Here - unknown
A310 - Space Squids - unknown
A312 - Dream Sequence 4 - unknown
A313 - Made Contact Internal - unknown
A318 - La 7 - unknown
A319 - Mulleck Well - unknown
A412 - Speed Ball - unknown
A505 - The Exhibition - unknown
A508 - Distant Memories - unknown
A513 - Water Hole - unknown
A607 - Jelly Legs - unknown
A610 - Camel - unknown
A611 - Abandoned Incoming - unknown
A612 - Induced Coma - unknown
A614 - Linear Block 5 - unknown
A615 - Unassumed - unknown
A616 - Elation - unknown

Edited.

[Enofa]

Long Shadows is 2001.

[Pandemonium]

OMG you are right, it has that Translations pieces everywhere.

Is this the only 2001 track Ross?

BTW feel free to rearrange the list, I'd like to have a definite one I'm sure other guys here would want it too.
Also, the 1994 tracks are messy, they should be ordered Lifeforms sessions first then ISDN sessions, and they're not...

[Pandemonium]

And how about the Extreme Music Promos, lots of them appeared on the Archives series, here's what I found out, I'm sure Ross will figure out more of them

XCD139 'Acid Breaks':
Jaw Breaker (04.32) - Speed Ball edit, Archive 4
Roid Rage (03.26) - ???
Big Max (04.20) - ???
Fly & Mash (04.52) - ??? pre-Accelerator acid
Skunk Junk (03.25) - 5 Months 5 Acres, Archive 4
Touching Bass (04.13) - Tingler '96, ISDN show, Dead Cities era
Swelter Skelter (04.42) - ??? old track

XCD140 'Deep Chill':
Bubble & Peak (05.22) - Lizzard Crawl, from Archive 1
Ice Stage (03.44) - Cellular Control edit, Archive 2
Unreality Check (04.20) - Out of Sync Child, Environments 3
Acid Drop (04.45) - ??? strange

XCD141 'Psychedelic Air':
Eerie Query (02.46) - ??? I know this one! but which one is it...
Polar Rinse (03.41) - ???
Tinted Love (02.07) - ??? I know this one! but which one is it...
Stark Tower (04.55) - She Fell Backwards, Environments 3
Dead Ringer (01.58) - ???

XCD142 'Dark Trance':
Sable Empire (03.26) - ??? Intelligent Communication era piece
Dearth Control (04.03) - 'Plasmatik' from Archive 4
Airless Whisper (04.20) - ???
Blindside Bizarro (03.50) - ???

XTW006 'Chaos':
Karakatoa (1.01) - Dougans New Solo stuff!
Ecstatic Interference (1.01) - Dougans New Solo stuff!

XCD148 'Dirty Breaks':
Partial Law (2.16) - new stuff..
Seven Shades (2.58) - Man Is a Virus in Shoes longer version, Peppermint Tree...
Road to Ruin (3.06) - new stuff..

[Enofa]

As I think I mentioned in another thread, Long Shadows is a remix of Paths by Robert Miles that was obviously not released because they decided on the Cosmic Jukebox remix instead.
ISDN/Lifeforms material is really tricky, because stuff like Dirty Shadows originates from around the Lifeforms era, even though it didn't appear until ISDN. I'd imagine there's a lot of stuff like that. Obviously the more breakbeaty/hip-hoppy tracks like Fractional Difference are very much ISDNy.

[Pandemonium]

How about the first 3 XCD141 'Psychedelic Air' tracks,
I'm sure you know where else they were released

Eerie Query (02.46)
Polar Rinse (03.41)
Tinted Love (02.07)

[Enofa]

Eerie Query = A Corner
Polar Rinse = Journey to the Centre
Tinted Love = a Polemical track, can't remember which one.

[Pandemonium]

Tinted Love = Iseum, Hand-Made Devices by Polemical

so, all in all 12 known tracks from 26, almost 50% not bad

[Pinyaka]

A318 - La 7 - unknown
A319 - Mulleck Well - unknown

Do you have some special version of Archives 3? Mine only has 17 tracks.

[kornbean]

Those two tracks used to be included in the digital version of Vol. 3, but were dropped with the physical release.

[dell1972]

Following on from comments about the lack of publicity on the AA gig in Finland, if what I've just noticed is correct then it takes it even further into the realms of actively hiding re-releases.

I just had a wander onto the overpriced folly that is Beatport, and saw that not only did they stick From the Archives 1-3 on itunes, they also put it on Beatport. Only, on Beatport they're listed as "Enhanced Editions".

http://www.beatport.com/release/from-th ... ion/900436" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Now I might be mistaken here, but looking at the timings of all the tracks in both locations, they're, well, different. Some considerably so. For example, Nuru Device Send is a minute longer.

Also, I took the lazy approach to comparing - i.e. listening to the really short tracks. Environments Birds, which is twice it's original length now has all sorts of laughing and waves - stuff that sounds very familiar from the most recent Electric Brainstorms where the Enhanced Editions first got a mention. Additionally, Environments Gong, which is again twice the length and has noticeably more layers of sound on it, has exactly the same end as Plough - the bonus track from Environments 4.

I'm assuming that the differences have just cropped up in this latest release, as I only have the original MP3 version from fsoldigital to compare it to. What I'd really like to know is, is this just available digitally in these locations, or are the physical copies being sold on fsoldigital the enhanced editions as well. I'd like to the physical copies of the earlier ones at some point, preferably the updated versions which sound like the tracks have been worked on and mixed together more.

This would be an ideal point for Mr. Baker to contact Graham and the band, but I appreciate he's got less time on his hands now he's in gainful employment.

It seems odd to do this rerelease in such a hush hush manner, unless that is I've not lost the plot and started hearing things....